The American Sociological Association (“ASA”) is the national professional
and scholarly association of sociologists in the United States. Founded in 1905,
the ASA has more than 13,000 members, including most sociologists holding
doctoral degrees from accredited universities. The ASA publishes nine leading
peer-reviewed journals. The ASA is committed to and bound by the highest
standards of research methodology and objectivity and is dedicated to advancing
sociology as a scientific discipline and profession that serves the public good.
The ASA has a long history of presenting the consensus research findings of
social scientists to American courts for their use in evaluating evidence and legal
issues, and its conclusions are regularly relied on by courts. As part of that
mission, the ASA submits this brief to present to the Court the consensus view of
social scientists on certain issues raised in these cases—namely, the effects of
same-sex parents on the wellbeing of children.
2

1
Pursuant to Rule 29(a) of the Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure, counsel for each party has
consented to the filing of this brief, and pursuant to Rule 29(c)(5) of the Federal Rules of Appellate
Procedure, amicus curiae states that no counsel for a party authored any part of this brief in whole or in
part, and no counsel or party made a monetary contribution intended to fund the preparation or
submission of this brief.
2
The ASA submitted similar amicus briefs to the Supreme Court of the United States in United States v.
Windsor, No. 12-307, and Hollingsworth v. Perry, No. 12-144, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit in Sevcik v. Sandoval, No. 12-17668, and Jackson v. Ambercrombie, No. 12-16995, to the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit in Kitchen v. Herbert, No. 13-4178, and Bishop v. Smith, No. 14-
5003, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fouth Circuit in Bostic v. Rainey, No. 14-1169, and to this
Court in Obergefell v. Himes, No. 14-3057.
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SUMMARY OF ARGUMENT
This brief addresses arguments that are frequently asserted by opponents of
marriage rights for same-sex couples related to the wellbeing of children (the
“Marriage Opponents”). Marriage Opponents often support laws that deny
marriage or limit the recognition of marriage to same-sex couples (collectively, the
“Marriage Bans”) based on an assertion that children fare better with different-sex
parents than with same-sex parents.
The claim that same-sex parents produce less positive child outcomes—
either because such families lack both a male and female parent, or because both
parents are not the biological parents of their children—is contradicted by
abundant social science research. Decades of methodologically sound social
science research, including multiple nationally representative studies and the
expert evidence introduced in courts around the country, confirm that positive
child wellbeing is the product of stability in the relationship between the two
parents, stability in the relationship between the parents and the child, and
sufficient parental socioeconomic resources.
3
Whether a child is raised by same-
sex or different-sex parents has no bearing on a child’s wellbeing.

3
Nationally representative studies are useful to understand child well-being in same-sex parent
households. Nonetheless, a significant amount of sociological research is based on qualitative or
convenience samples, and such samples are appropriate when there are subsamples that are hard to
capture in large data collections or on topics that require intensive interviewing to advance the
understanding of an issue.

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The clear and consistent consensus in the social science research is that
across a wide range of indicators, children fare just as well when raised by same-
sex parents as children raised by different-sex parents. Many of the social science
studies often cited by Marriage Opponents to support their arguments fail to
evaluate same-sex parents at all. Accordingly, as a matter of science, these studies
cannot serve as the basis for conclusions about same-sex parents and related child
outcomes and do not undermine the social science consensus that children fare just
as well with same-sex parents. To the extent some of the studies show that
stability improves child outcomes, they confirm that marriage rights for same-sex
couples and recognition of such marriages are likely to improve the wellbeing of
children of same-sex parents by providing enhanced family stability.
The Supreme Court has recognized that the government’s failure to
recognize marriages for same-sex couples “humiliates tens of thousands of
children now being raised by same-sex couples,”
4
making it “even more difficult
for the children to understand the integrity and closeness of their own family and
its concord with other families in their community and in their daily lives.” United

4
Based on the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, over 220,000 children live in same-
sex couple households. See Krista K. Payne, Demographic Profile of Same-Sex Couple Households with
Minor Children, 2012, National Center for Family & Marriage Research (FP-14-03),
http://www.bgsu.edu/content/dam/BGSU/college-of-arts-and-sciences/NCFMR/documents/FP/FP-14-
03_DemoSSCoupleHH.pdf; Gary J . Gates, LGBT Parenting in the United States (Feb. 2013),
http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/LGBT-Parenting.pdf. This number does not
include the significant number of children living with one parent who identifies as gay, lesbian, or
bisexual.
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States v. Windsor, 133 S. Ct. 2675, 2694 (2013). The research presented in this
brief articulates these points in greater detail, and demonstrates that the
government’s interest in promoting the wellbeing of children is neither
substantially nor rationally connected to the Marriage Bans because, inter alia, the
overwhelming scientific evidence shows that same-sex couples are equally capable
of generating positive child outcomes.
5

Courts have long relied on social science research to inform their decisions.
For example, in Roper v. Simmons, the Supreme Court relied on social science
research showing that “juveniles have less control, or less experience with control,
over their own environment” and that “[t]he personality traits of juveniles are more
transitory, less fixed” to support its conclusion that capital punishment for crimes
committed while a minor is unconstitutional. 543 U.S. 551, 569-70 (2005); see
also Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S. 304, 318 (2002) (noting that “[t]here is no
evidence that [mentally retarded individuals] are more likely to engage in criminal
conduct than others” and holding, in part based on the social science evidence and

5
The Marriage Bans in no way affect whether children will be raised by same-sex or different-sex
parents. They do not encourage gay and lesbian individuals to enter into different-sex marriages, nor do
they deter such individuals from having children within same-sex relationships. Various courts have
made this point when assessing the constitutionality of laws that limit the recognition of marriage to
different-sex couples. For example, with respect to the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit said: “We agree that promotion of procreation can be an
important government objective. But we do not see how DOMA is substantially related to it.” Windsor
v. United States, 699 F.3d 169, 188 (2d Cir. 2012), aff'd 133 S. Ct. 2675 (2013). See also Windsor v.
United States, 833 F. Supp. 2d 394, 404 (S.D.N.Y. 2012), aff'd 133 S. Ct. 2675 (2013) (“DOMA has no
direct impact on heterosexual couples at all; therefore, its ability to deter those couples from having
children outside of marriage, or to incentivize couples that are pregnant to get married, is remote, at
best.”).
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“germane expertise” of amicus curiae, that executing mentally retarded individuals
violates the Eighth Amendment); Hall v. Florida, 134 S. Ct. 1986, 1993 (2014)
(indicating that “it is proper to consider . . . psychiatric and professional studies,”
and relying on such studies to invalidate a bright-line rule for determining
intellectual disability for death penalty eligibility).
In this instance, when the social science evidence is exhaustively
examined—which the ASA has done—the facts demonstrate that children fare just
as well when raised by same-sex parents. Unsubstantiated fears regarding same-
sex parents do not overcome these facts and provide no justification for upholding
the Marriage Bans.
ARGUMENT
I. SCHOLARLY CONSENSUS IS CLEAR: CHILDREN OF SAME-SEX
PARENTS FARE JUST AS WELL AS CHILDREN OF DIFFERENT-
SEX PARENTS
The social science consensus is clear: children raised by same-sex parents
fare just as well as children raised by different-sex parents. Numerous credible and
methodologically sound social science studies, including several employing
nationally representative samples, form the basis of this consensus. These studies
reveal that children raised by same-sex parents fare just as well as children raised
by different-sex parents across a wide spectrum of measures of child wellbeing:
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academic performance, cognitive development, social development, psychological
health, early sexual activity, and substance abuse.
A. ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AND COGNITIVE
DEVELOPMENT
Social science research confirms that the academic performance of children
raised by same-sex parents is indistinguishable from that of children raised by
different-sex parents. A leading study by Daniel Potter based on nationally
representative, longitudinal data found no significant difference in academic
achievement between children of same-sex parents and children of different-sex
parents. See Daniel Potter, Same-Sex Parent Families and Children’s Academic
Achievement, 74 J ournal of Marriage & Family 556 (2012). Similarly, another
leading 2009 study by sociologists Alicia Fedewa and Teresa Clark employing
nationally representative data that examined the academic achievement of first-
grade children reported no significant differences in academic achievement
between children raised by same-sex and different-sex parents. See Alicia L.
Fedewa & Teresa P. Clark, Parent Practices and Home-School Partnerships: A
Differential Effect for Children with Same-Sex Coupled Parents?, 5 J ournal of
GLBT Family Studies 312 (2009); see also Michael J . Rosenfeld, Nontraditional
Families and Childhood Progress Through School, 47 Demography 755 (2010)
(demonstrating that children of residentially stable same-sex parents are as likely to
make normal progress through school as children from stable different-sex married
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parents); Douglas W. Allen et al., Nontraditional Families and Childhood
Progress Through School: A Comment on Rosenfeld, 50 Demography 955 (J une
2013), http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13524-012-0169-x/fulltext.html
(confirming similar results of academic performance when comparing children of
residentially stable same-sex parents with children of stable different-sex married
parents).
6
The same pattern holds true among older children. For example, in
another nationally representative study, social scientists found similar GPA levels
among adolescents living with same-sex and different-sex parents. See J ennifer L.
Wainright et al., Psychosocial Adjustment, School Outcomes, and Romantic
Relationships of Adolescents with Same-Sex Parents, 75 Child Development 1886
(2004).
Research also reveals similar cognitive development between children raised
by same-sex parents and different-sex parents. See J ustin A. Lavner et al., Can
Gay and Lesbian Parents Promote Healthy Development in High-Risk Children

6
Marriage Opponents often cite to this study. Allen re-works data used by Rosenfeld, but he ignores
stability as a control factor, and as a result, finds a difference in academic achievement. However, as
Rosenfeld himself responds, and as demonstrated by the social science consensus, stability is the primary
factor influencing child outcomes. By removing the control element for stability, Allen cannot discern
children’s family history. Allen’s work thereby conceals that many children in families with same-sex
parents come from other settings, such as foster care, influencing the results but not reflecting on the
quality of same-sex parents. Allen conceded that, when stability is included as a control element, his
study confirms that same-sex parents have no negative impact on academic outcomes of children. See
Transcript of Record at 128-29, DeBoer v. Snyder, No. 12-10285, ECF No. 148 (E.D. Mich. Mar. 4,
2014) (accepting that the “report finds no statistically significant difference in graduation rates when you
control for parental education and marital status and when you do control for five years of residential
stability”). See also Michael J . Rosenfeld, Reply to Allen et al., 50 Demography 963 (J une 2013),
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs13524-012-0170-4.
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Adopted from Foster Care?, 82 American J ournal of Orthopsychiatry 465 (2012).
In fact, a report of children with same-sex parents reveals that they score at least as
well as—and sometimes better than—children of different-sex parents on
numerous indicators of educational achievement and involvement. See J oseph G.
Kosciw & Elizabeth M. Diaz, Involved, Invisible, Ignored: The Experiences of
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Parents and Their Children in Our
Nation’s K-12 Schools, Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (2008).
Finally, Marriage Opponents have cited a recent paper written by Douglas
Allen for the proposition that a discrepancy in high school graduation rates exists
between children raised by same-sex and different-sex parents. See Douglas W.
Allen, High School Graduation Rates Among Children of Same-Sex Households,
11 Rev. Econ. Household, 635–58 (Sept. 2013),
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11150-013-9220-y. This study does
not change the analysis of the literature because when 5-year residential stability
was controlled for, there was no statistical difference in the graduation rates of
young adults (ages 17–22) living in same-sex and different-sex parent families.
Moreover, unlike prior research on high school graduation rates, this study rests on
the living arrangements of young adults at the time of interview rather than during
the relevant period of adolescence that preceded graduation (the period relevant for
studying the impact on graduation rates).
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B. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
The social development of children raised by same-sex parents is equivalent
to that of children raised by different-sex parents. Analysis of nationally
representative data reveals no differences in social adjustment depending on
whether children were raised by same-sex or different-sex parents. See Fedewa &
Clark at 312. Nationally representative studies of adolescents find that the number,
support, and quality of peer relationships and friendships are similar for teens
raised by female same-sex parents and those raised by different-sex parents. See
J ennifer L. Wainright & Charlotte J . Patterson, Peer Relations Among Adolescents
with Female Same-Sex Parents, 44 Developmental Psychology 117 (2008); see
also Fiona Tasker, Lesbian Mothers, Gay Fathers and Their Children: A Review,
26 Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics 224 (2005) (discussing studies that
find that children of same-sex parents exhibited the same typical adjustments
related to peer relations as children of different-sex parents and therefore could not
be said to fare worse based on their parents’ sexuality).
C. MENTAL HEALTH
Social science studies also confirm that children of same-sex parents are just
as psychologically healthy as children of different-sex parents. According to a
nationally representative study, adolescents raised by same-sex and different-sex
parents report similar levels of self-esteem and depression. See Wainright et al. at
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1886. Other reliable studies corroborate these results. See Loes van Gelderen et
al., Quality of Life of Adolescents Raised from Birth by Lesbian Mothers: The US
National Longitudinal Family Study, 33 J ournal of Developmental & Behavioral
Pediatrics 1, 1 (2012) (concluding that “[a]dolescent offspring in planned lesbian
families do not show differences in [quality of life] when compared with a matched
group of adolescents reared in heterosexual families”). Recent research focusing
on young children reports that the ability of adopted children to externalize and
internalize behaviors does not depend on whether they are raised in male same-sex,
female same-sex, or different-sex parent families. See Abbie E. Goldberg &
J uliAnna Z. Smith, Predictors of Psychological Adjustment in Early Placed
Adopted Children With Lesbian, Gay, and Heterosexual Parents, 27 J ournal of
Family Psychology 431 (2013). Similarly, studies reveal no greater levels of
anxiety or Attention Deficit Disorder among teenagers raised by same-sex parents
than among those raised by different-sex parents. See Nanette Gartrell & Henny
Bos, US National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study: Psychological Adjustment
of 17-Year-Old Adolescents, 126 Pediatrics 28 (2010).
7

D. EARLY SEXUAL ACTIVITY
Social science studies also demonstrate that teenagers raised by same-sex
parents and those raised by different-sex parents engage in similar levels of
teenage sexual activity. For instance, nationally representative studies show that
similar proportions of teenagers raised by same-sex parents and by different-sex
parents have had sexual intercourse or a romantic relationship. See Charlotte J .
Patterson & J ennifer L. Wainright, Adolescents with Same-Sex Parents: Findings
from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, in Adoption by
Lesbians and Gay Men: A New Dimension in Family Diversity (David M.
Brodzinsky & Adam Pertman eds., 2012). Reports by 17-year-olds raised by
lesbian mothers of their sexual behavior indicate that the age at which they first
engage in sexual intercourse was slightly older than those in a gender- and age-
matched national sample of children raised by different-sex parents. See Nanette
Gartrell et al., New Trends in Same-Sex Sexual Contact for American
Adolescents?, 41 Archives of Sexual Behavior 5 (2011). Moreover, the odds of
having a sexually transmitted disease, becoming pregnant, or impregnating
someone were statistically similar. Id. And none of the children raised by same-
sex parents examined in the National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study reported
any physical or sexual abuse by a parent or caregiver. See Nanette Gartrell et al.,
Adolescents of the U.S. National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study: Sexual
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Orientation, Sexual Behavior, and Sexual Risk Exposure, 40 Archives of Sexual
Behavior 1199 (2011).
E. SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS
Social science studies confirm that children of same-sex parents are no more
likely to abuse substances than children of different-sex parents. A nationally
representative sample of adolescents living with female, same-sex parents reveals
that the adolescents are similar to their counterparts raised by different-sex parents
in terms of frequency of and problems with substance use (i.e., tobacco, alcohol,
and marijuana) and delinquent behavior. See J ennifer L. Wainright & Charlotte J .
Patterson, Delinquency, Victimization, and Substance Use Among Adolescents with
Female Same-Sex Parents, 20 J ournal of Family Psychology 526 (2006).
Furthermore, children of different-sex and same-sex parents report similar levels of
problematic, rule-breaking, and inappropriately aggressive behaviors. See Gartrell
& Bos.
* * *
As the overwhelming body of social science research confirms, whether a
child is raised by same-sex or different-sex parents has no bearing on a child’s
wellbeing.
8
Instead, the consensus is that the key factors affecting child wellbeing

8
Some critics make blanket dismissals of the studies underlying the social science research consensus.
See, e.g., Loren Marks, Same-Sex Parenting and Children’s Outcomes: A Closer Examination of the
American Psychological Association’s Brief on Lesbian and Gay Parenting, 41 Social Science Research
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are stable family environments and sufficient parental socioeconomic resources,
neither of which is related to the sex or sexual orientation of a child’s parents. See
Rand D. Conger et al., Socioeconomic Status, Family Processes, and Individual
Development, 72 J ournal of Marriage & Family 685 (2010). These factors indicate
that in order to enhance child outcomes and wellbeing, we should encourage stable
and financially secure family units—including same-sex parent families—rather
than exclude the hundreds of thousands of children living with same-sex couples
from the stability and economic security that marriage provides.
II. THE RESEARCH CLAIMED TO UNDERMINE THE CONSENSUS
EITHER DOES NOT ADDRESS SAME-SEX PARENTS AND THEIR
CHILDREN OR IS OFTEN MISCHARACTERIZED BY MARRIAGE
OPPONENTS
Studies often relied on by Marriage Opponents fail to support the claim that
children fare better with different-sex parents than with same-sex parents because
nearly all of the studies do not examine same-sex parents or their children. For
example, Marriage Opponents often cite to a study by Kristin Anderson Moore et
al. that was published by Child Trends to support their arguments, but the authors
of that study have explicitly disclaimed the use of their work for this purpose.
Similarly, Marriage Opponents frequently cite to studies by David Popenoe as

735 (2012). The ASA’s review of the studies confirms that they are methodologically sound and conform
to the highest standards of sociological research.
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authoritative in spite of the fact that his work does not analyze families with same-
sex parents.
Moreover, Marriage Opponents often rely on two papers by Mark Regnerus
for the proposition that children fare better with different-sex parents. But for the
reasons articulated below, and as Regnerus himself acknowledges, these papers do
not examine, and provide no conclusions regarding, the wellbeing of children who
lived with and were raised by same-sex parents.
As described below, the reports often put forth by Marriage Opponents have
no bearing on the issue of same-sex parents because they draw inappropriate
apples-to-oranges comparisons and often do not address same-sex parents at all.
Moreover, certain findings in the studies are sometimes mischaracterized by
Marriage Opponents and actually affirm that family stability and greater parental
socioeconomic resources are the principal factors affecting child wellbeing.
A. STUDIES CITED BY MARRIAGE OPPONENTS DO NOT
ADDRESS SAME-SEX PARENTS AND DO NOT UNDERMINE
THE CONSENSUS
Marriage Opponents often rely on studies analyzing stepparents, single
parents, and adoptive parents—none of which address same-sex parents or their
children—in order to make speculative statements about the wellbeing of children
of same-sex parents. The studies confirm that parental stability and higher parental
socioeconomic resources are the key drivers of positive child outcomes.
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Studies Regarding the Impact of Biological and Non- 1.
Biological Parents
Marriage Opponents often cite studies purporting to show that children are
best served by biological parents rather than adoptive parents or those conceived
by donor sperm, e.g., Institute for American Values (Elizabeth Marquardt, Norval
D. Glenn, & Karen Clark), My Daddy’s Name is Donor: A New Study of Young
Adults Conceived Through Sperm Donation (2010)). It is hard to see the relevance
of reports about the significance of biological parenting on the issue of marriage
rights for same-sex couples given that both adoption and assisted reproduction are
widely used by different-sex couples, as reflected in the very sources often cited in
support of the Marriage Bans.
But in any case, there is no basis for the assertion that adoption or assisted
reproduction leads to negative child outcomes. Studies indicate that children
raised in adoptive families since infancy or in families utilizing assisted
reproduction techniques fare just as well as other children. See Gartrell & Bos at
33–34 (showing that “adolescents who have been raised since birth in planned
lesbian families demonstrate healthy psychological adjustment” and that they
“demonstrated higher levels of social, school/academic, and total competence than
gender-matched normative samples of American teenagers”); Brent Miller et al.,
Comparisons of Adopted and Non-Adopted Adolescents In A Large, Nationally
Representative Sample, 71 Child Development 1458 (2000) (finding little
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difference between adoptees and non-adoptees who live in two-parent families, and
finding, to the extent there was any difference, that the difference occurs in
children who were adopted later in their childhood). The recent 2013 study by
Goldberg and Smith corroborates this finding. That study examined 120 families
who have adopted children younger than 18 months old. Utilizing longitudinal
data, the study reported that adopted children across families with male same-sex,
female same-sex, and different-sex parents fair equally as well in terms of
externalizing and internalizing behaviors, which are well established factors for
measuring child wellbeing. See Goldberg and Smith.
Studies Regarding the Impact of Stepparents, Divorced 2.
Parents, or Single Parents
Marriage Opponents often rely on studies examining the impact of
stepparents, divorced parents, and single parents on child wellbeing outcomes, and
use these studies to argue that two biological parents are necessary to positive child
outcomes. Contrary to their assertions, these studies in no way examine same-sex
parents or their impact on child wellbeing. See, e.g., Kristin Anderson Moore et
al., Marriage from a Child’s Perspective: How Does Family Structure Affect
Children, and What Can We Do About It?, Child Trends Research Brief 1–2, 6
(J une 2002), http://www.childtrends.org/wp-
content/uploads/2013/03/MarriageRB602.pdf (comparing the wellbeing of children
raised by stepparents and single parents to that of children raised by stable, two
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parent families); Sara McLanahan & Gary Sandefur, Growing Up with a Single
Parent 38 (1994) (comparing “disrupted” families with “intact” families, but
nowhere discussing same-sex parents); Marilyn Coleman et al., Reinvestigating
Remarriage: Another Decade of Progress, 62 J ournal of Marriage & Family 1288
(2000) (comparing stepparents to non-divorced parents, but not addressing same-
sex parents); Mark V. Flinn et al., Growth and Fluctuating Assymetry of
Stepchildren, 20 Evolutionary Human Behavior 465 (1999) (analyzing the
wellbeing of children raised by stepfathers, but not addressing same-sex parents);
Nicholas H. Wolfinger, Understanding the Divorce Cycle: The Children of
Divorce in Their Own Marriages (2005) (analyzing the impact of divorce, but not
addressing same-sex parents). Accordingly, they cannot be relied upon as
scientific evidence regarding the effects of same-sex parenting.
Aside from not specifically addressing same-sex parents, the studies
regarding stepparents and divorce indicate that child outcomes are, on average, not
as positive because of the disruption caused by divorce or the introduction of a new
parent into the family, but do not indicate that the source of the negative outcomes
is related to the fact that the stepparent is not biologically related to the child. See,
e.g., Moore et al. at 1 (“Divorce is linked to academic and behavior problems
among children, including depression, antisocial behavior, impulsive/hyperactive
behavior, and school behavior problems. Mental health problems linked to marital
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disruption have also been identified among young adults.”). Therefore, the
argument that research regarding stepparents is relevant to same-sex parents
because at least one of the same-sex parents is not the biological parent, and is
therefore “step,” is misplaced. In a planned, same-sex parent family, both parents
have brought the child into the family and raised the child from infancy.
Accordingly, the studies often cited by Marriage Opponents analyzing the effects
of single parents and stepparents are mischaracterized. The research on children in
divorced, single parent, and stepparent families simply says nothing about the
wellbeing of children raised by same-sex parents.
Finally, and critically, the authors of one of the principal studies frequently
relied on by Marriage Opponents—the Child Trends study by Kristin Anderson
Moore, et al.—have publicly responded that their study focused on children being
raised in families headed by single parents, stepparents, and married, different-sex
parents and not same-sex parents. See Kristin Anderson Moore et al. Moreover,
before the Supreme Court considered Windsor and Perry, the authors of the Child
Trends study expressly disclaimed the misuse of their study by the Bipartisan
Legal Advisory Group, which defended DOMA, explaining that “no conclusions
can be drawn from this research about the wellbeing of children raised by same-sex
parents or adoptive parents.” Id. In addition, this study concluded that “when
researchers have compared marriage to cohabitation, they have found that marriage
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is associated with better outcomes for children.” Id. Extending this logic to the
context of same-sex couples and their children, recognition of marriage rights of
such couples would improve, not impair, the wellbeing of children being raised by
currently unmarried same-sex parents. See also Wendy D. Manning & Kathleen
A. Lamb, Adolescent Well-Being in Cohabiting, Married, and Single-Parent
Families, 65 J ournal of Marriage & Family 876 (2003) (noting that marriage
provides enhanced socioeconomic resources to families, improving child wellbeing
outcomes); Pamela J . Smock & Wendy D. Manning, Living Together Unmarried
in the United States: Demographic Perspectives and Implications for Family
Policy, 26 Law & Policy 87, 94 (2004) (discussing the role of marriage in
contributing to the stability of a family).
Studies Regarding Gender Roles in Families with Different- 3.
Sex Parents
Marriage Opponents also rely on a number of studies that examine the
parental roles of mothers and fathers within the context of different-sex parent
families and claim that these studies demonstrate that child wellbeing depends on
having both a male and female parent. See, e.g., C.A. Nelson & M. Bosquet,
Neurobiology of Fetal and Infant Development: Implications for Infant Mental
Health, in Handbook of Infant Mental Health 37–59 (C.H. Zeanah J r. ed., 2d ed.
2000); Eleanor Maccoby, The Two Sexes 266–67 (1998); Paul R. Amato &
Fernando Rivera, Paternal Involvement and Children’s Behavior Problems, 61
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J ournal of Marriage & Family 375 (1999); Shmuel Shulman & Moshe M. Klein,
Distinctive Role of the Father in Adolescent Separation-Individuation, 62 New
Directions for Child & Adolescent Development 41, 53 (1993). But these studies
do not support this suggestion, and reliance on them is misplaced for multiple
reasons.
First, like the other studies cited by Marriage Opponents, these studies do
not examine the parenting and disciplinary dynamics of same-sex parents. Without
any social science evidence to support their conclusion, they are asking a court to
deduce that a child raised by two married same-sex individuals would not receive
the necessary neural development or improvement in emotional and
communicative skills. No such conclusion is proper based on any study published
to date.
Second, Marriage Opponents ignore the fact that the research regarding
different parenting roles and styles indicates that those roles are relative, and
nothing in the research indicates that same-sex couples are not able to provide such
parenting dynamics. See David Popenoe, Life Without Father: Compelling New
Evidence that Fatherhood & Marriage Are Indispensable for the Good of Children
& Society, 147 (1996) (noting that among same-sex parents, one partner commonly
fills the “male-instrumental role while the other fills the female-expressive role” in
rearing their children).
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21

Third, the research also indicates that there is a range of parenting styles,
that no couple parents identically, and that children do not need their parents to
adopt particular parenting styles to be well adjusted. See Paul R. Amato & Frieda
Fowler, Parenting Practices, Child Adjustment, and Family Diversity, 64 J ournal
of Marriage & Family 703, 714 (2002) (“When parents spend time with children,
help with homework, talk about problems, provide encouragement, and show
affection, children do well.”).
Fourth, arguments based on rigid gender roles should be rejected as courts
and social scientists routinely decline to rely upon “outdated misconceptions” and
“loose-fitting characterizations” regarding gender. See Craig v. Boren, 429 U.S.
190, 198–99 (1976); see also Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, 490 U.S. 228, 251,
255-56 (1989) (“[W]e are beyond the day when an employer could evaluate
employees by assuming or insisting that they matched the stereotype associated
with their group[.]”).
Finally, the studies relied on by Marriage Opponents that examine the role of
absentee fathers, see, e.g., Popenoe at 146, do not establish that, within the context
of same-sex parents, fathers are necessary to the child’s wellbeing. In fact, the
research regarding the negative impact of absentee fathers, such as David
Popenoe’s, has nothing to do with the unique contributions of fathers, but rather
with the loss of a parental relationship. Id. at 139 (“Much of what fathers
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22

contribute to child development, of course, is simply the result of being a second
adult in the home. Other things being equal, two adults are far better than one in
raising children. As the distinguished developmental psychologist Urie
Bronfenbrenner has noted, the quality of interaction between principal caregiver
and child depends heavily on the availability and involvement of another adult, a
third party who assists, encourages, spells off, gives status to, and expresses
admiration and affection for the person caring for and engaging in joint activity
with the child.” Id. (internal quotations omitted)).
In sum, the studies relied upon by Marriage Opponents examine child
outcomes within the context of different-sex relationships, and do not address the
impact of same-sex parents on child wellbeing. These studies do not undermine
the social science consensus, supported by the most reliable studies available, that
children raised by same-sex parents fare just as well as children raised by different-
sex parents across a broad spectrum of indicators.
B. THE REGNERUS PAPERS DO NOT SUPPORT
CONCLUSIONS ABOUT CHILDREN RAISED BY SAME-SEX
PARENTS
Marriage Opponents often rely on two papers by Mark Regnerus, referred to
herein as “Regnerus 2012a” and “Regnerus 2012b,” to demonstrate that children of
same-sex parents do not fare as well as with children of opposite-sex parents. See
Mark Regnerus, How Different Are The Adult Children of Parents Who Have
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23

Same-Sex Relationships? Findings from the New Family Structures Study, 41
Social Science Research 752 (2012) (“Regnerus 2012a”); Mark Regnerus,
Parental Same-Sex Relationships, Family Instability, and Subsequent Life
Outcomes for Adult Children: Answering Critics of the New Family Structures
Study with Additional Analyses, 41 Social Science Research 1367 (2012)
(“Regnerus 2012b”). Both papers are analyzed in greater detail below, but it is
important to note at the outset that Regnerus 2012a did not examine children raised
by same-sex parents, and provides no support for the conclusions that same-sex
parents are inferior parents or that the children of same-sex parents experience
worse outcomes. This critique of Regnerus 2012a was made in an internal audit in
the very journal in which Regnerus’s article was published—indeed, this audit
went so far as to state that the Regnerus 2012a paper should not have been
published. Darren E. Sherkat, The Editorial Process and Politicized Scholarship:
Monday Morning Editorial Quarterbacking and a Call for Scientific Vigilance, 41
Social Science Research 1346–1349 (2012). Nor does the re-stated Regnerus
2012b paper remedy the deficiencies contained in Regnerus 2012a.
The Regnerus 2012a Paper Offers No Basis for Conclusions 1.
About Same-Sex Parents
First, the Regnerus 2012a paper does not specifically examine children born
or adopted into same-sex parent families, but instead examines children who, from
the time they were born until they were 18 or moved out, had a parent who at some
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24

time had “a same-sex romantic relationship.” See Regnerus 2012a at 752. As
Regnerus noted, the majority of the individuals characterized by him as children of
‘lesbian mothers’ and ‘gay fathers’ were the offspring of failed different-sex
unions whose parent subsequently had a same-sex relationship. Id. In other
words, Regnerus did not study or analyze the children of two same-sex parents.
Second, when the Regnerus 2012a paper compared the children of parents
who at some point had a “same-sex romantic relationship,” most of whom had
experienced a family dissolution or single motherhood, to children raised by two
biological, married different-sex parents, the study stripped away all divorced,
single, and stepparent families from the different-sex group, leaving only stable,
married, different-sex parent families as the comparison. Id. at 757 (the
comparison group consisted of individuals who “[l]ived in intact biological
famil[ies] (with mother and father) from 0 to 18, and parents are still married at
present”). Thus, it was hardly surprising that this different-sex parent group had
better outcomes given that stability, as noted above, is a key predictor of positive
child wellbeing. By removing divorced, single, and step-parent families from the
different-sex group, the Regnerus 2012a paper makes inappropriate apples-to-
oranges comparisons.
Third, the Regnerus 2012a data analysis failed to consider whether the
children lived with, or were raised by, the parent who was, at some point,
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25

apparently involved in “a romantic relationship with someone of the same sex” and
that same-sex partner. Id. at 756. Instead, Regnerus categorized children as raised
by a parent in a same-sex relationship regardless of whether they were in fact
raised by the parent and the parent’s same-sex romantic partner and regardless of
the amount of time that they spent under the parent’s care. As a result, so long as
an adult child believed that he or she had had a parent who at some point had a
relationship with someone of the same sex, then he or she was counted by
Regnerus as having been “raised by” a parent in a same-sex relationship.
Fourth, in contrast to every other study on same-sex parents, Regnerus
2012a identified parents who had purportedly engaged in a same-sex relationship
based solely on the child’s own retrospective report of the parent’s romantic
relationships that were made once the child was an adult. This unusual
measurement strategy ignored the fact that the child may have limited and
inaccurate recollections of their parents’ distant romantic pasts. Id.
Finally, Regnerus failed to account for the fact that negative outcomes may
have been caused by other childhood events or events later in the individual’s adult
life, particularly given that the vast majority of the outcomes measured (thirty-
seven of forty) were adult and not childhood outcomes. Regnerus himself
recognizes that the survey data he relied upon—the New Family Structures
Study—“is poised to address [questions] about the lives of young adults between
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26

the ages of 18 and 39, but not about children or adolescents.” Regnerus 2012a at
755. Factors other than having same-sex parents are likely to explain these
outcomes in the Regnerus 2012a study. Regnerus himself concludes that “I am
thus not suggesting that growing up with a lesbian mother or gay father causes
suboptimal outcomes because of the sexual orientation or sexual behavior of the
parent.” Id. at 766 (emphasis in original).
In sum, by conflating children raised by same-sex parents with individuals
who reportedly had a parent who had “a romantic relationship with someone of the
same sex” at some point, and referring to such individuals as children of “lesbian
mothers” or “gay fathers,” the Regnerus 2012a paper obscures the fact that it did
not specifically examine children raised by two same-sex parents. Accordingly, it
cannot speak to the wellbeing of children raised by same-sex parents.
The “Re-Stated” Regnerus 2012b Paper Offers No Basis for 2.
Conclusions About Same-Sex Parents
A group of over one hundred social scientists signed an article faulting the
Regnerus 2012a paper for failing to take account of family structure and family
instability. See Gary J . Gates et al., Letter to the Editor and Advisory Editors of
Social Science Research, 41 Social Science Research 1350 (2012). The article
specifically criticized Regnerus 2012a’s failure to “distinguish between the impact
of having a parent who has a continuous same-sex relationship from the impact of
having same-sex parents who broke-up from the impact of living in a same sex
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27

stepfamily from the impact of living with a single parent who may have dated a
same-sex partner.” Id. Regnerus acknowledged the merit of these scholarly
critiques regarding the underlying aspects of his research and subsequently
published a second analysis of the data, which is referred to as Regnerus 2012b.
Through Regnerus 2012b, Regnerus attempted to remedy the fact that Regnerus
2012a did not analyze whether the children had actually lived with the parent who,
according to the adult child, had at some point, been “romantically involved” with
someone of the same sex.
Nevertheless, the Regnerus 2012b analysis does not resolve the problems
inherent in the initial analysis and contains many of the same shortcomings. First,
a recently published review of Regnerus 2012a elaborated on these shortcomings.
See Andrew J . Perrin, Are Children of Parents Who Had Same-Sex Relationships
Disadvantaged? A Scientific Evaluation of the No-Differences Hypothesis, 17
J ournal of Gay & Lesbian Mental Health 327 (2013).
9
Second, Regnerus 2012b
maintained the same flawed and extremely broad definition of what constitutes
“lesbian mothers” and “gay fathers” for the purposes of the study—that is, a
mother or father who ever had a romantic relationship with someone of the same-
sex during the period from the birth of the child until the child turned eighteen (or

9
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan recently evaluated Regnerus’s study,
finding that it was “flawed on its face.” See DeBoer v. Snyder, No. 12-CV-10285, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS
37274, at *23 (E.D. Mich. Mar. 21, 2014).
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28

left home to be on their own). Regnerus 2012b at 1368. Accordingly, Regnerus
2012b continues to ignore stability as the primary factor in child outcomes. Third,
Regnerus 2012b still fails to account for the duration of time spent with a mother
who was “romantically involved” with a same-sex partner and that partner. See id.
at 1372. Only two of the eighty-five children who at some point lived with a
mother who was “romantically involved” with another woman reported that they
did so for the entire duration of their childhood. Finally, the Regnerus 2012b paper
is still not informative of same-sex parents because Regnerus did not determine
whether the recorded childhood experiences occurred while the mother lived with a
same-sex partner or during another family living arrangement.
If any conclusion can be reached from Regnerus 2012a and 2012b, it is that
family stability is predictive of child wellbeing. As Regnerus himself notes, family
structure (for instance whether the family has a single parent or two parents)
matters significantly to child outcomes. See Regnerus 2012a at 761. As the social
science consensus described above demonstrates, the evidence regarding children
raised by same-sex parents overwhelmingly indicates that they fare just as well as
children raised by different-sex parents, and that children raised by same-sex
parents are likely to benefit from the enhanced stability the institution of marriage
provides to their families. All told, the Regnerus studies, even as revised, simply
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29

do not undermine the consensus that children raised by same-sex parents fare just
as well as those raised by different-sex parents.
CONCLUSION
The social science consensus is both conclusive and clear: children fare just
as well when they are raised by same-sex parents as when they are raised by
different-sex parents. This consensus holds true across a wide range of child
outcome indicators and is supported by numerous reliable studies, including those
using nationally representative data. Accordingly, assuming that the Marriage
Bans have any effect on whether children are raised by different-sex or same-sex
parents, there is no basis to prefer different-sex parents over same-sex parents. The
research supports the conclusion that extension of marriage rights to same-sex
couples has the potential to improve child wellbeing insofar as the institution of
marriage may provide social and legal support to families and enhances family
stability, which are key drivers of positive child outcomes. The Regnerus papers
and other sources relied on by Marriage Opponents provide no basis for their
arguments because they do not examine the wellbeing of children raised by same-
sex parents. These studies therefore do not undermine the consensus from the
social science research and do not establish a legitimate basis for upholding the
Marriage Bans.

1. This brief complies with the type-volume limitation of Fed. R. App. P.
32(a)(7)(B) because this brief contains 6,907 words, excluding the parts of
the brief exempted by Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(7)(B)(iii).

2. This brief complies with the typeface requirements of Fed. R. App. P.
32(a)(5) and the type style requirements of Fed. R. App. P. 32(a)(6) because
this brief has been prepared in a proportionally spaced typeface using
Microsoft Word 2010 in 14-point Times New Roman font.

I hereby certify that on J une 16, 2014, I electronically filed the Amicus
Curiae Brief of the American Sociological Association in Support of Plaintiffs-
Appellees and Plaintiffs-Appellees/Cross-Appellants using the Court’s CM/ECF
system.

I certify that the foregoing document was served on all parties of their
counsel of record through the CM/ECF system.

Case: 14-5297 Document: 91-1 Filed: 06/16/2014 Page: 40 (40 of 41)
6CA-1
8/08 Page 1 of 2
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT
Disclosure of Corporate Affiliations
and Financial Interest
Sixth Circuit
Case Number: Case Name:
Name of counsel:
Pursuant to 6th Cir. R. 26.1,
Name of Party
makes the following disclosure:
1. Is said party a subsidiary or affiliate of a publicly owned corporation? If Yes, list below the
identity of the parent corporation or affiliate and the relationship between it and the named
party:
2. Is there a publicly owned corporation, not a party to the appeal, that has a financial interest
in the outcome? If yes, list the identity of such corporation and the nature of the financial
interest:
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I certify that on _____________________________________ the foregoing document was served on all
parties or their counsel of record through the CM/ECF system if they are registered users or, if they are not,
by placing a true and correct copy in the United States mail, postage prepaid, to their address of record.
s/
This statement is filed twice: when the appeal is initially opened and later, in the principal briefs,
immediately preceding the table of contents. See 6th Cir. R. 26.1 on page 2 of this form.
14-5297 Tanco, et al. v. Haslam, et al.
Carmine D. Boccuzzi, J r.
American Sociological Association
No
No
06/16/2014
Carmine D. Boccuzzi, J r.
Case: 14-5297 Document: 91-2 Filed: 06/16/2014 Page: 1 (41 of 41)